Solar Crisis (film)

Plot summary

In 2050, a huge solar flare is predicted to irradiate the Earth. Astronauts aboard the spaceship Helios must go to the Sun to drop a bomb equipped with an Artificial Intelligence (Freddy) and a Japanese pilot (as a backup if the Artificial Intelligence fails) at the right time so the flare will point somewhere else. Giant IXL Corp CEO Teague thinks the flare will not happen and wants the mission to fail so he can buy the planet cheaply while the scare lasts. Employee Haas prepares a surprise for the astronauts. While Steve Kelso commands the space ship where temperature rises, Steve's father Admiral 'Skeet' Kelso is searching the desert for Steve's son Mike who has gone AWOL to say goodbye to his dad but who inadvertently crossed the path of the guys from IXL after meeting desert-dweller Travis.

Cast

Production

Solar Crisis began shooting in November 1989 with an announced budget of $30 million. Nippon Steel, one of the investors, announced a Japanese theme park based on the film. Scientist Richard J. Terrile served as a technical advisor for the film. He at first tried to convince the filmmakers to avoid sending a crew to the Sun, calling it unscientific. When it was explained to him that audience would demand such a plot point regardless of scientific accuracy, Terrile said he realized his job was to make impossible situations sound more plausible. TV Guide quoted the final budget as $43 million. The film opened in Japan in 1990. When it underperformed, the producers extensively recut and reshot scenes to secure an American distributor. Sarafian had his name removed from the credits and replaced with the Director's Guild of America alias "Alan Smithee". Sarafian's son, Tedi, who performed rewrites, was credited as "Crispan Bolt".

Reception

TV Guide rated it 2/5 stars and wrote, "Enjoy its awesome visuals or scorn its slipshod execution, Solar Crisis amounts to one small step for cinema, one giant leap for Alan Smithee."